A Sea Of Red

A. No acceleration lanes -
What better way for you to accelerate from 15 to 55 by throwing you in the midst of fast moving cars almost perpendicular to the highway? Let's be honest, it's popular to make fun of the locals for stopping at yield signs but this is why they do it (mostly). You have to wait for just the right moment








B. Candler's Mountain Maze -
Anyone who's ever had someone come visit them at LU is familiar with having to tell that person at some point, "You have to take a right before Applebee's." Every year we see helicopter parents dropping their darling freshman off, and subsequently driving their white minivans (complete with their haha "My child and $$$$$ go to Liberty University" sticker) all the way down past Applebee's and magically winding up on 460. If they're lucky they take the LU exit and try it again. There's already a light at the Candlers Mt Rd/Mayflower Dr intersection. How hard would it have been to create a left turn lane?








C. Giant unnecessary highway clovers -
Our local highways need on-ramps and off-ramps. There's no denying that. What they don't need are giant mile-long loop de loops and curly Q's to get off and on them. I've often thought that you could fit a park in the dead space of the 460/Wards Rd clover. It's actually landscaped so that it looks like one. In addition to the wasted space, you're often having to jockey for position when exiting with a guy that's trying to get on the on-ramp. Should I slow down or speed up? Is he slowing down? No, we both are. This is not an 8 lane highway in Los Angeles exiting onto another interstate. A regular on/off-ramp would do.








D. U turn-like suicide -
I admit, I don't really know what to do here. The situation is turning from Seminole Ave onto the 29S/501N on-ramp. Let's ignore the 29S/501N conundrum. Explaining to visitors/freshman the fact that a southerly road turns into a northerly one could be in this poll of traffic annoyances. Let's focus on the fact that you're trying to go in the opposite direction you're facing on a road that runs parallel to you about 20 feet away. Do you dart across the 2 lanes of opposing traffic only to put on your blinker and cross them again? Or do you do a U turn-style maneuver which involves you driving on the wrong side of Wards Rd for a good 2 seconds or so. And if you think about it, these are your only options. If you decide to avoid this, you turn around and drive up to Candler's Mt Rd, there's no way to get on the on-ramp that way.








E. Who's-turn-is-it? intersection
This one might not be as well known as the others, but A LOT of people here have lived at County Green at one point, and if you've even been there before, you've experienced this. It's a 4 way stop at the intersection of Graves Mill/McConnville/Nationwide. This is not necessarily poorly designed other than another confusing situation of Graves Mill taking a 90 degree turn. However, if you get there, and there are any other cars there, it turns into a nightmare. I really don't know why this is, but drivers never know when it's their turn. You might have a guy that waves 5 or 6 people through before he feels it's his turn (I've been stuck behind him). Or the opposite: You've waited your turn and 2 other folks have gone and a dude will just slip through right behind one of the guys you had to wait for. To compound the problem, there are 2 turning lanes who can go simultaneously with someone in their lane that is going a different direction. That probably throws off some of the more dimwitted motorists.






F. Other -
If you vote for F, please describe what's worse than these

i went with A, though every single one of these is equally annoying.

All of those are bad but red light runners are the worst. A cop could sit at any intersection and write tickets all day long for people running red lights.

There are a ton of acceleration lanes its just that people dont know how to use them and think Yield means stop. That's the most annoying for me.

A is by far the worst. I almost got run by a semi coming off Candler's Mtn. onto the expressway because apparently he didn't believe "NO ACCELERATION LANE" didn't apply to him. Had there been a car in the left lane, when I swerved, I would have been toast. The problem is that half of the interchanges have no acceleration lane, the other half do, and no one knows how to handle it. I could see why it would be extremely frustrating for an out of towner.

F -- everyone in this town drives 15 miles below the speed limit at all times. It's unreal.

Hold My Own wrote:There are a ton of acceleration lanes its just that people dont know how to use them and think Yield means stop. That's the most annoying for me.

There are some acceleration lanes, yes. But on 29, or what used to be 29 I guess, there are none. Look at the one pictured above. If it's heavy traffic, you're going to have to stop. There is no possible way for you to get up to speed enough to merge into traffic.

Chris Lang wrote:The problem is that half of the interchanges have no acceleration lane, the other half do, and no one knows how to handle it.

THIS.

this is our latest in dot mental retardation.

the 2 paths are the way i go to and from work each and every day and its completely retarded...

the bridge is new (south of this picture milan beltway) and this is how they designed its merging into the rest of the roads...

before it was just a straight shot east to west....now if you are heading east and want to continue west you have to exit, loop around and get back on. (my red line) if you are heading west, you have to exit, sit at the longest light in the history and then get back on (my blue line)

if you are coming from the bridge you have to exit to go west. its easy if you go east.

needless to say it was mass confusion when it first opened...

First of all, Great post... With the pictures and all.

Mine is an "other". You wouldnt really notice it unless you had to travel it every day as I do but it pisses me off.

The Light at Leesville rd. and Greenview. If you are on Leesville headed towards Timberlake and want to make a right at the light on greenview to get on 460 there are 2 lanes. 1 Lane is straight or Left turn (Very understandable) and the other is straight or right turn only. It really pisses me off when people are in the right lane and want to go straight. Legally Youre allowed to yes, but you can turn right on a red and just because they want to be closer to the light (i guess) they get in the right lane to go straight and you cant turn right until the light turns green. It seems like most people understand and stay to the left no matter how long the line, but there is always 1 idiot in the right lane wanting to go straight and 10 cars behind him that could turn right in any other circumstance but cant because this guy wants to be as close TO THE RED LIGHT as possible. It just ticks me off, That is all

I also do not like how people here will not pull up to the white line at an intersection.

The guy in the lane beside me yesterday was TWO car lengths behind the line....creating enough back up that people that need to get to the turn lane cannot until well after the light has turned.

I had to vote "other" for the new roundabout that they are putting on 5th Street. What was Lynchburg thinking? Were they trying to make us more like D.C.?

They're all so horrible, but one big one you forgot is the lack of understanding that the left lane on the highway is for passing, the right lane is for speed-limit people.

Also, the monstrosity that is the "intersection at the Bob Evans entrance. You've got the north and southbound lanes on Wards, the offramp/launching-pad coming down from 29/460, and the entrance to three restaurants, all converging to the same point. I don't know how there hasn't been a 8-car pile-up of death there.

Chris Lang wrote: F -- everyone in this town drives 15 miles below the speed limit at all times. It's unreal.

Winner.

As I said even back in the olden days (as I tailgated people around town in my sweet '70 Nova): "nowhere to go and all day to get there".

wonder why everyone hated me.

The acceleration lanes, or lack thereof, or the ones that are about 10 feet in length.

I personally don't mind the giant Wards Rd./460 cloverleaf.

ALUmnus wrote:They're all so horrible, but one big one you forgot is the lack of understanding that the left lane on the highway is for passing, the right lane is for speed-limit people.

Also, the monstrosity that is the "intersection at the Bob Evans entrance. You've got the north and southbound lanes on Wards, the offramp/launching-pad coming down from 29/460, and the entrance to three restaurants, all converging to the same point. I don't know how there hasn't been a 8-car pile-up of death there.

I left that out because we had an entire thread about it once. I didn't want to be so redundant.

Lang's post:
"F -- everyone in this town drives 15 miles below the speed limit at all times."

How I read it:
"F -- everyone in this town that drives 15 miles below the speed limit at all times."

I thought he was censoring himself.

TylerBakersGonnaBGreat wrote:First of all, Great post... With the pictures and all.

Mine is an "other". You wouldnt really notice it unless you had to travel it every day as I do but it pisses me off.

The Light at Leesville rd. and Greenview. If you are on Leesville headed towards Timberlake and want to make a right at the light on greenview to get on 460 there are 2 lanes. 1 Lane is straight or Left turn (Very understandable) and the other is straight or right turn only. It really pisses me off when people are in the right lane and want to go straight. Legally Youre allowed to yes, but you can turn right on a red and just because they want to be closer to the light (i guess) they get in the right lane to go straight and you cant turn right until the light turns green. It seems like most people understand and stay to the left no matter how long the line, but there is always 1 idiot in the right lane wanting to go straight and 10 cars behind him that could turn right in any other circumstance but cant because this guy wants to be as close TO THE RED LIGHT as possible. It just ticks me off, That is all

To add to this post, because it just happened. If the LEFT LANE IS EMPTY and you are going straight and you change lanes to go STRAIGHT IN THE RIGHT LANE I wish nothing but disease on your whole family.

Ok, I'll give you that one. That guy's just an idiot. But in your first scenario when there's a big line in the left lane, I'm going in the right lane. I'll creep up to try and give you enough room to still turn behind me, but if that's not possible, you'll just have to deal with it.

LUconn wrote:Ok, I'll give you that one. That guy's just an idiot. But in your first scenario when there's a big line in the left lane, I'm going in the right lane. I'll creep up to try and give you enough room to still turn behind me, but if that's not possible, you'll just have to deal with it.

If you try thats fine... and if the line on the left is REALLY long thats understandable, but if theres 4 cars in the left lane and you just want to be closer to the light... youre an idiot. Not YOU but yeah.

I voted for A, but I've always wanted to have a camping/cookout party in the Southwest most portion of C.

I use the picture for E a lot. It's not bad once you get used to it, you can pretty much tell when someone isn't going to take their turn.

ATrain wrote:The acceleration lanes, or lack thereof, or the ones that are about 10 feet in length.

I personally don't mind the giant Wards Rd./460 cloverleaf.

This is where the problem is. Worls shortest on ramps and longest off ramps, basically.

On many of the spots you have no choice but to stop because youve got people going at speed and if you just go with it you could be almost t-boned trying to merge or t-bone somebody merging

I am absolutely and totally suprised no one mentioned that this is the only place where you can go NORTH AND SOUTH at teh same time. The whole 501 N/ 29 S always threw me off. I never give directions based on roads around here. I always settle for landmarks
A runner up is coming off of 460 to Timberlake. You can go in a straight line and the name changes about 3 or 4 times finally ending up downtown!!

I did not vote because there was not an all of the above option.

I love Lynchburg but I do not miss the road system or the directional confusion that ensues. I am still comfortable driving around the town when I visit, but it seems to take a person about a year of driving to get a feel for the roads in Lynchburg.

I prefer the NESW road grid that we have here in flat country.

I was tempted to vote for no acceleration lanes... but then I remembered that many roads have no shoulders! I am not just talking about soft/unpaved shoulders. I am talking about NO shoulders. Frequently I have oncoming traffic being 1/3 of the way into my lane going up Candlers Mtn.